Arnold, Don
Professor of Biological Sciences
The Arnold lab develops molecular tools for studying and manipulating neural circuits. We have developed novel recombinant probes known as FingRs, which label synaptic proteins such as PSD95, Gephyrin, and CamKii with high fidelity without causing off-target effects. We have used FingRs to visualize the formation of memories in larval zebrafish. These probes can also be used to ablate synapses, leading to functional disruption of neural circuits in a fast, efficient, and reversible manner. More recently, we developed ATLAS, a protein that mediates anterograde tracing of neural circuits from genetically determined neurons. We believe that ATLAS and its variants for tracing neuromodulatory circuits will be powerful tools for observing and manipulating neural circuits in the context of living organisms.
Chang, Karen T.
Associate Professor of Physiology and Neuroscience
Our lab is interested in understanding how neurons communicate with high fidelity to support complex brain functions. We aim to uncover the molecular and cellular mechanisms that enable precise synaptic signaling and to explore how disruptions in these processes contribute to neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative disorders. Using Drosophila melanogaster as a genetically tractable model system, we integrate electrophysiology, molecular biology, confocal imaging, proteomics, and behavioral analysis to investigate synaptic function and plasticity.
Chen, Jeannie
Professor of Physiology and Neuroscience
The major focus of my laboratory is to study sensory neuron signaling and mechanisms of retinal degeneration and neurodegeneration using cell culture and rodent models. Through interdisciplinary collaboration, we deciphered basic mechanisms of sensory neuron signal transduction and disease pathogenesis in retinal degeneration and neurodegeneration where protein mis-folding and aggregation is an underlying cause of disease.
Dickman, Dion
Associate Professor of Biological Sciences
Synaptic development, function, and plasticity in Drosophila.
Herring, Bruce
Associate Professor of Biological Sciences
The Herring lab integrates in vivo calcium imaging, machine learning-enhanced behavioral analysis, and ex vivo brain slice electrophysiology to understand the development of ASD/ID and psychiatric disorders in the brain.
Hires, Samuel Andrew
Associate Professor of Biological Sciences
The Hires lab is investigating the basis of biological intelligence. Over the past decade we developed numerous imaging tools to record large-scale patterns of neural activity that are used by thousands of neuroscience labs. These have resulted in hundreds of publicly available datasets embedded with rich representations of neural activity. We are now developing analytical tools, using recent AI developments, to ultimately distill undiscovered principles of biological intelligence from these datasets.
